44 KOREMATSU V. UNITED STATES
Toy-Fung Tung
HUM 300: Landmark Supreme Court Cases: Korematsu V. United States
Toy-Fung Tung is a professor in the Literature department at John Jay College of Criminal Justice
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Starting with the landmark Supreme Court case, Korematsu v. United States (1944), this course will explore the long history of legalized racism against those of Asian ancestry, starting in the 19th Century and culminating in Executive Order 9066 (1942), allowing U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry to be put in internment camps, which was upheld by Korematsu. We will explore the history, significance, and aftermath of the Korematsu decision from legal, social, and cultural perspectives. We will study the Korematsu case itself and learn about how the Supreme Court functions to “make law.” We will examine the human cost of the Korematsu decision by investigating archives relating to the camps, including diaries, pictures, maps, interviews, and stories. We will look at films and other sources documenting racist attitudes of the time, such as movies about Dr. Fu Manchu and Charlie Chan.
Access Syllabus: Korematsu V. United States
